“Typically, suicidal thoughts and behaviors are seen in older teens,” Lisa Horowitz, a clinical scientist in the study, said in a news release. “It was troubling to see that so many preteens screened positive for suicidal risk, and we were alarmed to find that many of them had acted on their suicidal thoughts in the past.”

According to the screening study published online at Hospital Pediatrics, one in five of the preteens who visited the ER for psychiatric issues had previously attempted suicide.

More than 54 percent of the preteens who screened positive for suicide were in the emergency rooms with psychiatric issues, and 7 percent had gone to the ER for a physical complaint.

David Fuentes, a licensed clinical psychologist with the David Lawrence Center, a comprehensive mental health organization in Collier County, Florida, said the NIH study is on target.

“It is actually quite alarming how often teens are having those suicidal thoughts,” Fuentes said. “The majority of them have no plan but the thought is quite often.”

There is often a disconnect between teens who say they are not depressed and how they answer other questions that are indicative of suicide risk, such as “my life is terrible” or “I have no purpose,” he said.

“It’s pretty common,” he said.

CLOSE

Suicide rates have risen in nearly every state, including Indiana. Here are some resources for those in need of help.
Dwight Adams, dwight.adams@indystar.com

Screening Collier County children and teens for behavioral health issues is done at pediatric practices because of an initiative spearheaded by Healthcare Network of Southwest Florida. The program involves having kids screened for behavioral health during medical appointments.

In 2018, Healthcare Network performed behavioral health screenings for 5,141 children ages 12-17 years old, according to the nonprofit organization.

The Joint Commission, the accreditation organization for hospitals, requires emergency rooms to screen patients for suicide risk who present with mental health or behavioral issues, said Dr. Catherine Marco, a spokeswoman for the American College of Emergency Physicians who works at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, Ohio.

The Joint Commission does not require universal screening of all patients for suicide risk, but Marco said it has become common practice.

Teenagers face a lot of stress at school, socially and in their home lives; the suicide screening is helpful to get them to treatment resources, Marco said. Often, teenagers and others are candid with their answers.

In Florida, 20 suicide deaths were reported among kids ages 10 to 14 in 2016, according to the state Department of Children and Families.

Suicides increased to 276 deaths that same year among those age 15 to 24 in Florida, according to DCF’s annual Suicide Prevention Coordinating Council.

Betsy Novakovich, administrator of emergency services with the NCH Healthcare System in Collier, said NCH screens all patients for suicide risk, regardless of the reason they come to the emergency rooms.

“As a result of this process we have identified patients of all ages, including children, who are clearly experiencing depression and are in need of further assistance,” she said.

Social media influences and the prevalence of bullying are two culprits for why many preteens and older teens struggle with well-being, said Fuentes, with David Lawrence.

Suicide is the third-leading cause of death among young people ages 10 to 24 in the U.S., yet more young people survive suicide attempts than die, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Each year, about 157,000 people aged 10 to 24 are treated in emergency rooms for self-inflicted injuries.

Posted!

A link has been posted to your Facebook feed.

Mourners proceed with the coffin of a shooting victim, slain by an Australian white supremacist gunman who went on a killing spree at two mosques, at the Memorial Park cemetery in Christchurch on March 20, 2019. A Syrian refugee and his son were buried in New Zealand on March 20 in the first funerals for those killed in the twin mosque massacre as Kiwis braced for days of emotional farewells following the mass slayings. MARTY MELVILLE, AFP/Getty Images

Residents stand on rooftops in a flooded area of Buzi, central Mozambique, on March 20, 2019, after the passage of cyclone Idai. International aid agencies raced on March 20 to rescue survivors and meet spiralling humanitarian needs in three impoverished countries battered by one of the worst storms to hit southern Africa in decades. Five days after tropical cyclone Idai cut a swathe through Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi, the confirmed death toll stood at more than 300 and hundreds of thousands of lives were at risk, officials said. ADRIEN BARBIER, AFP/Getty Images

A resident gathers her goods for sale, while a house nearby burns after a fire gutted an informal settlers area in Quezon City suburban Manila on March 20, 2019. Local news reported some 250 houses were destroyed leaving 750 families homeless. TED ALJIBE, AFP/Getty Images

A Palestinian demonstrator from Birzeit University carries a tire to burn during clashes with Israeli forces in Ramallah, near the Jewish settlement of Beit El, in the occupied West Bank on March 20, 2019. Two Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces in clashes near a flashpoint religious site in the occupied West Bank overnight, the Palestinian health ministry said. ABBAS MOMANI, AFP/Getty Images

A woman prays at the Potocari memorial center for victims of the Srebrenica genocide in Potocari, Bosnia and Herzegovina, March 20, 2019. United Nations appeals judges upheld the convictions of former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, and increased his sentence from 40 years to life imprisonment. Marko Drobnjakovic, AP

A Kashmiri woman walks past paramilitary soldiers taking shelter near closed shops as it rains during a strike in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, March 20, 2019. Authorities imposed restrictions in parts of Srinagar on Wednesday after the Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) called for a shutdown to protest against the alleged custodial death of a youth. Mukhtar Khan, AP

Pope Francis gestures as he interacts with people who cannot hear or speak at the end of the weekly general audience on March 20, 2019, at St. Peter's square in the Vatican. VINCENZO PINTO, AFP/Getty Images

Members of The Druid Order take part in a celebration of the Spring Equinox during a ceremony at Tower Hill in London, March 20, 2019. The Spring Equinox marks when the plane of Earth's equator passes through the center of the Sun. On the day of an equinox, daytime and night time are of approximately equal duration. The Druid Order have been holding public ceremonies in London since 1717. NEIL HALL, EPA-EFE

A gallery assistant poses by a mirror in The Painted Hall in the Old Royal Naval College at Greenwich in London, March 20 2019. The 4000 square meter baroque Painted Hall was used as a dining room and has been restored as part of an over 10 million dollar (8.5 million pound Stirling) conservation project. It will be open to the public on March 23, 2019. NEIL HALL, EPA-EFE

The Labrador Retrievers Lincoln (rear) and the 14-week-old puppy Rommy sit at the American Kennel Club's (AKC) Museum of the Dog on March 20, 2019, in New York City. Labrador Retrievers were announced the most popular breed in the US. JOHANNES EISELE, AFP/Getty Images

A baby reticulated giraffe gazes into the camera in the Zoo of Debrecen, Hungary, March 20, 2019. The calf was born two and half weeks ago. This species of giraffe is native in Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya. ZSOLT CZEGLEDI, EPA-EFE